Will A Shark Tank Shark Save TikTok? Ask Mr. Wonderful Kevin O'Leary!

“Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary is on the brink of sealing a deal to acquire TikTok’s U.S. business, aiming to prevent the app from facing a ban in the country. The popular social media platform is facing a potential ban in the U.S. on January 19 unless its parent company, Bytedance, secures a buyer for its American operations. O’Leary announced on social media his partnership with former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt for the bid.

… The acquisition of TikTok’s American business is estimated to come with a hefty price tag of $300 billion. Concerns surrounding TikTok’s potential ties to the Chinese government have been a focal point for U.S. lawmakers, who fear the app may function as spyware. … TikTok has over 2 billion active monthly users as of 2025, making it the 5th most popular social media platform globally. The four before it are Facebook (3.07 billion monthly active users); YouTube (2.53 billion monthly active users); Instagram (2 billion monthly active users); WhatsApp (2 billion monthly active users).

… TikTok was launched in 2016 as “Douyin” in China by ByteDance and expanded internationally in 2017. It merged with Musical.ly in 2018 to form the TikTok we know today. If you haven't ever seen it, Zach King’s illusion video of him “riding a broomstick” is the most-watched TikTok ever, with billions of views. See it below!